Forte School of Music : Enhance a child's ability to think, learn, reason, create : Music lessons, tuition in Australia, New Zealand, UK. A structured curriculum for children of 6 months to adults. Exciting, award-winning programs

The Benefits of Music

How music affects Brain Development

Music is a universal language and mankind's oldest artform. Even before a child learns to speak, they learn to communicate and connect with song and sound. Children take to music naturally. Some suggest that babies are born with inherent musical capabilities because their responses to music are immediate and instinctive: they are not learned.

While every child can enjoy, learn and grow through music, there is increasing evidence to show that active participation in musical activities can actually alter the anatomy of the brain. Researchers believe that early musical experiences intensify the development of neuronal synapses. By increasing the number of interconnections between brain cells, music essentially enhances a child's ability to think, learn, reason and create.

It is important to note however, that for music to have a profound effect on brain development, a child must physically engage in musical activities. Furthermore, these activities must provide a comprehensive sensory experience. It is not enough for a child just to listen to music.

They need to take part - to feel, make, hear and memorize sounds and patterns; to sing, clap dance and remember movements. The quality and timing of these musical experiences are paramount. Ideally, parents should aim to expose their children to musical activities prior to age two when the proliferation of neuronal synapses is at its peak. However, the number of synapses remain elevated until a child is around 10 years of age, so the benefits of music can still be realised in older children.

Dr Gordon Shaw, a world renowned pioneer in music and brain studies with over 25 years of research, describes "music as a window into higher brain function".

Sources:
International Foundation for Music Research, www.music-research.org
American Music Conference, www.amc-music.org
American Music Association, www.americanamusic.org
Australian Music Association, www.australianmusic.asn.au

Worldwide Research discoveries

Music lessons have been shown to improve a child's performance in school.
In a recent experiment, after 8 months of lessons, pre-schoolers showed a 46% boost in their spatial IQ which is crucial for higher brain functions such as mathematics.
Students who were exposed to music-based lessons scored a full 100% higher on fraction texts than those who learned in a conventional manner.
Research reveals that pre-school years are the optimal "learning time" for developing musical ability.
Young children with developed rhythm skills perform better academically.
In a ten-year study in the US, which tracked over 25,000 students, a direct correlation between music studies and improved school results has been acknowledged.
A two-year study in Switzerland involving 1,200 children in 50 classes, scientifically demonstrated how music improved children's reading and verbal skills through enhanced concentration, memory and self expression.
Other findings revealed that the children in the study had better interpersonal relationships, experienced a greater enjoyment of school, were less stressed during testing and were better able to handle performance pressures.
A series of studies conducted in Europe in the 1950s concluded that learning and playing music not only improved academic performance but also improved memory, reasoning, working as a team, time management and the ability to think creatively.
Music is now being recognised as a form of intelligence, not just a manifestation of it.

For the very young child

The Jungle Music and Music is Fun (MIF) programmes exposes your child to a rich sensory-based experience where they can participate and enjoy a range of activities.

Jungle Music will teach you how to use music as a tool to aid your parenting. Music can be an effective way to settle a crying baby, to help children with transition and to overcome resistance to new and unfamiliar experiences. Jungle Music's songs and quirky actions equip parents with a useful "bag of tricks" for when boredom sets in – in a shopping queue, in the car or whenever young minds need to be kept amused.

Forte's early childhood music programmes will benefit your child through:

Music enhances brain development. Jungle Music and MIF can improve your child's ability to think, learn, reason and create.
promoting active participation by children, which is essential for heightened brain development
Strong focus on fun, sensory-based activities enhances your child's learning experience and increases the impact and overall benefits afforded by music.
Build your child's confidence and self esteem.
Developing positive social skills such as sharing, respect and empathy.
Music will improve your child's memory, problem solving techniques, understanding and recollection.
Developing your child's fine and gross motor skills through dancing, clapping and other choreographed physical movements.
Music aids language development. Jungle Music and MIF will help your child learn new words and develop their vocabulary.

Jungle Music provides a wonderful opportunity for one-on-one bonding between you and your child.

Benefits to the adult student

Many of the positive attributes in terms of learning capability enhancement and personal growth mentioned above are also applicable to grown-ups, though in varying degrees. More generally, more mature students benefit in the following ways:-

Music enriches the inner-self and is therapeutic in nature. In learning an instrument, our energies are channeled into a constructive outlet. Through playing music, we can give an expressive shape to our experience. It puts us in touch with our feelings, and also helps us relate to the wider world, getting away from our daily routine.

Music performance teaches people how to cope with anxiety when expressing oneself in any forum. Literally, it familiarises one with the dynamics of performing under direct scrutiny; instilling self-confidence and poise.

Ensemble performance teaches teamwork and cooperation. It reinforces certain social values in our lives.

Most important, taking up music lessons is a direct approach to developing a lifelong appreciation and love of music, and a good foundation in practical and theoretical aspects would enable a music lover to further explore its beauty and complexities.

Benefits to children of all ages

Early musical training helps develop brain areas involved in language and reasoning. It is thought that brain development continues for many years after birth. Recent studies have clearly indicated that musical training physically develops the part of the left side of the brain known to be involved with processing language, and can actually wire the brain's circuits in specific ways. Linking familiar songs to new information can also help imprint information on young minds.

There is also a causal link between music and spatial intelligence (the ability to perceive the world accurately and to form mental pictures of things). This kind of intelligence, by which one can visualize various elements that should go together, is critical to the sort of thinking necessary for everything from solving advanced mathematics problems to being able to pack a book-bag with everything that will be needed for the day.

Music performance teaches young people to conquer fear and to take risks. A little anxiety is a good thing, and something that will occur often in life. Dealing with it early and often makes it less of a problem later. Risk-taking is essential if a child is to fully develop his or her potential.

Forte's early piano courses will benefit your child through:

Music enhances brain development. Keyboard courses can improve your child's ability to think, learn, reason and create.
promoting active participation by children, which is essential for heightened brain development
Strong focus on fun, sensory-based activities enhances your child's learning experience and increases the impact and overall benefits afforded by music.
Build your child's confidence and self esteem.
Developing positive social skills such as sharing, respect and empathy.
Music will improve your child's memory, problem solving techniques, understanding and recollection.
Developing your child's fine and gross motor skills and coordination through playing different lines of music with both hands together.
Music aids language development.